Saint Clair police arrest two burglars in Pottsville

Police from Pottsville and Saint Clair serve a search warrant at 622 Mahan-tongo St.

David McKeown/staff photos
Saint Clair police made two arrests in Pottsville on Monday related to burglaries that occurred in Saint Clair in October and November. Tim Reed and Raymond Acker Sr., 622 Mahantongo St., Pottsville, were arrested on numerous theft charges after police found stolen cash and weapons at the residence. Saint Clair police Officer Frank DiMarco, right, questions Acker's son, Raymond Acker Jr., who was detained but not arrested.

Saint Clair police arrested two Pottsville men Monday who allegedly broke into a borough home and stole currency and rifles, according to Saint Clair police Chief Michael Carey.

In the process, police discovered a house full of items stolen from homes in Saint Clair and Pottsville, Carey said.

"I can give you an exact amount of the U.S. currency we recovered. It's $3,527. That's just in bills. And we have, literally, two plastic totes filled with coins and other items," Carey said.

Charged were filed against Raymond C. Acker Sr., 53, and Tim Reed, 35, both of 622 Mahantongo St.

They were charged with two counts each of burglary, criminal conspiracy, theft, receiving stolen property and one count each of criminal mischief, Carey said.

The two were given a video arraignment at Schuylkill County Prison at 8:30 p.m. Monday by on-duty Magisterial District Judge James R. Ferrier, Orwigsburg. Acker Sr. and Reed were both unable to post $25,000 straight cash bail, and were committed to the prison.

City police contacted Monday night said they haven't made any arrests in the case as of yet but the investigation is continuing.

Acker and Reed broke into a home at 53 S. Front St. in Saint Clair at least twice between Oct. 24 and Nov. 20, the day the burglary was reported.

"They went in and out at least twice over a several day period. That we can prove. But the investigation is continuing, so there could be more charges that are filed," Carey said.

Carey would not release the name of the person living at that property in an effort to keep their identify confidential.

The residence has an alarm but it did not go off, Saint Clair police Officer Frank DiMarco said in the affidavit.

Once inside, the burglars cut the power by turning off the electricity at the main fuse box. They then removed copper tubing from the furnace and various places throughout the house, DiMarco said.

Also stolen was a gray safe taken from an upstairs bedroom. It contained "Morgan Silver Dollars," early 20th century "Silver Certificate dollar bills" and weapons, including "15-20 long guns that were stored on gun racks leading to the steps to the attic," DiMarco said.

During the investigation, Saint Clair police discovered the coin sets that were stolen were taken to Muller Jewelry in Hamburg and cashed in on two dates, Nov. 21 and 29.

Using photos of the property and suspects in the case, borough police interviewed workers at Muller Jewelry. Police confirmed Acker and Reed brought in some of the antique currency and received a payout of $13,209.02, according to the criminal complaint.

Based on that information, DiMarco went to the office of Magisterial District Judge David A. Plachko, Port Carbon, at 2 p.m. Monday and acquired a search warrant for 622 Mahantongo St.

DiMarco believed the guns and other stolen items were being stored there.

Assisted by city police, the officers searched the home and found numerous items stolen from local homes.

"Numerous victims of other thefts from Pottsville were contacted and brought to the scene to identify property, which was later returned to them," Carey said.

While Acker's son, Raymond Acker Jr., was handcuffed and detained for questioning at the scene, he was not charged Monday, Carey said.

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